Shoot Me or Let Me Walk Out
by dcj
Summary: What if it was both?
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Rookie Blue.

A different ending to Takedown. The first chapter is a Prologue.

I'm not exactly sure where I'm going with this, but I hope you like it.

* * *

_I could still taste him on my lips. _

_Sam had just left with Angel. I told Angel I would go, but Angel wanted Gabe and so did Sam. Now they left to go God knows where, and I have no idea what I have gotten Sam into…but I need to find out._

Sam had barely left when the wheels started turning in Andy's head. She didn't care that she was over thinking it; she just need to know how soon Sam would be back. Andy was worried and she craved reassurance. Unfortunately, she didn't know if Rick would be able to give that to her or not.

She thought that maybe, if she could get Rick talking, he might give her something to hold onto, anything that might convince her that Sam was going to be OK.

Slipping back into her role as Edie, she began. "Lotta money, huh?"

Under the guise of small talk, Andy kept digging, "So…any idea where they're going? You know how close this place is?" She wanted, no needed, to know just how long before she would see Sam again.

Rick wasn't very forthcoming, though. Whether it was because he didn't know or because he didn't want to tell her, Andy couldn't decide; so she opted for a different tactic.

"OK…Gabe doesn't tell me much either," Andy sympathized.

"What?" Rick replied.

She thought she had piqued his interest so she continued. "I'm just saying, you know…it seems like we're both kind of in the dark here."

Andy hoped she might be able to goad him into giving up more information, and he was definitely getting his back against the wall.

"Yeah well I'm not." Rick defended.

"OK - you don't look very old." She observed, pausing to let that sink in. "Yeah, I'm assuming this is probably one of your first big jobs so it doesn't really make sense to tell much to a kid."

"Hey! They tell me plenty all right." He bragged.

_Now we're getting somewhere - time to turn the screws a little tighter. "_Of course they do honey… yeah. It's fine that's why Gabe and Angel are taking care of everything." Andy belittled, with the condescension clear in her voice.

"Boy you really think your boyfriend's all that." Rick marveled.

"Well Landry did give him 2 million dollars."

"Yeah and he screwed up the deal that's why Landry had to fly into town to smooth things over." Rick disputed.

Andy had gotten way more than she bargained for and the panic was starting to surface. "Landry's in town?"

"Yeah, I picked him up at the airport myself." Rick replied smugly, before rubbing it in a little. "Oh…I guess you don't know everything either."

Andy had made up her mind. "Yeah…I'm gonna go." Her chest started constricting as various scenarios flashed through her head – not one of them ending well for Sam.

"Go? That wasn't the deal." Rick reminded her.

"I'm going." Sam's life was in danger and nothing was going to stop her from doing everything she could to save him.

"Hey," Rick yelled, and he pulled out his gun. "Look…don't make me shoot you OK? I don't wanna but I will."

_Not good enough. _"Let me tell you something Rick, right now you're in the middle of the worst day of your life." Andy informed him.

He wasn't buying it. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"You're scared." It wasn't a question; it was a statement of fact – one that Andy knew applied to her as well.

"No." Rick denied.

"Yeah cause you don't want to let down all those people who are counting on you." She knew she was not just talking about Rick again. Andy felt the weight of every decision she had ever made as a cop, and she was overwhelmed by the added pressure of knowing that Sam's life depended on the next one she was about to make.

"Well the best thing you can hope for right now is to get out of here alive." Andy stated, and then raised her voice as she pulled out her ace. "…which you will not do if you keep pointing that gun at a cop."

"Are you a cop?" Rick asked, not really sure he wanted to know the answer.

"Yeah…right now they're taking my partner to a place where they're going to kill him the second they see he is not Gabe so I'm going to walk out that front door and I'm going to try and save him." Andy had never been more determined in her life.

"And if you shoot me, a bunch of other cops are going to come in here and do a whole lot worse to you. OK…you're only other option is to let me walk out." Andy persuaded.

"I'll go to jail." Rick realized aloud.

"Yeah, probably but you know what? You'll be alive in jail."

Rick was in denial. "I can't…I can't do that."

"Shoot me or let me walk out; because you might be new at this, but this is not my first day." Andy started backing away towards the door. She kept her eyes on Rick, still not sure exactly where his head was at. She was banking on his insecurity and inexperience. But time was running out and she knew she had to move before she was too late.

"Don't you walk away." Rick warned.

She turned her back on him. It was do or die time…literally.

"I'm not kidding. Stop!" He ordered, but she just kept going as he followed her around the corner.

"Turn around – c'mon stop." He was almost begging her…he really didn't want to do it. But the people he worked for were not the kind of people you let down…at least not if you wanted to live to tell about it.

Andy kept walking; though she couldn't seem to get enough air. It felt like her lungs were collapsing. She took a deep breath trying to stay calm but her heart was anything but. It was beating out of her chest as it powered the adrenaline coursing through her veins.

"Stop!" Rick yelled one last time.

She really didn't think he would, but he must have panicked. She flinched at the sound not truly comprehending what he had done. In the back of her mind, the shot registered but it was insignificant – the only thing she could focus on was Sam and the sharp pain she felt at the thought of losing him. She had to hurry. She had to save him or nothing else would ever matter anymore.

Andy made it to the exit, and the minute the cool air hit her face, she was running towards her backup. Noelle, Boyd and Callahan were running towards her.

"We heard a gunshot." Noelle yelled.

_Insignificant._ "You gotta stop Sam's car; as soon as he gets to Bergen he's made. They're gonna kill him." Andy yelled.

She was terrified, but her feelings were irrelevant. It didn't matter that the boots were killing her and the ache in her chest was almost unbearable; they were nothing compared to the prospect of losing Sam.

Noelle grabbed the radio. "Alpha 2, Alpha 6, 10-33, Officer in jeopardy, move in now."

As they got in to the SUV, someone asked again. "Andy, didn't we hear a gun shot?"

"I don't know…I think so…just…let someone else take care of it." Andy really didn't care what happened with Rick; she knew there would be uniformed backup that would also have been called in when they heard the shots. They would already be entering the lounge to retrieve the money, and she was certain Rick was too scared to leave.

Boyd raced to the scene as they listened to the takedown play out over the radio. Andy was struggling to focus on the words, but they definitely hit the mark when a voice on the radio reported 'shots fired.'

Noelle heard it too and grabbed her radio again. "This is Alpha 1; there is an undercover cop in the building. I repeat an undercover cop in the building."

Everyone in the vehicle was on edge, but Andy had already dropped over it. She couldn't concentrate; she was overcome by her thoughts, drowning in them until she was pulled to the surface again. Someone had been shot in the chest. The realization that it could be Sam was almost too much as the pain in her own chest threatened to consume her.

They finally reached the warehouse. It was chaos: uniforms, ETF, flashing lights…

Luke, Boyd and Noelle exited the vehicle first; Andy was moving slowly through her haze trying to reconcile the scene with reality. _Was this really happening? Could Sam really be…_

Luke and Boyd headed directly to the body under the tarp moving to answer the question that Andy couldn't bear to voice. She forced herself to watch, not really wanting to see. She barely had time to feel the relief at seeing it was Angel, when she heard her name. "McNally!"

Her head snapped to the left so her eyes could validate what her ears had just heard. The release was immediate when Sam smiled over at her. _His smile…she would still get to see it every day._

She thought that seeing him would free the tension in her chest, but it was still there. She walked towards Sam. "You're ok," she assured herself, the relief apparent in her voice.

"Yeah…thanks to you." Sam praised. "You were great in there."

"Thanks." She said with a shy smile.

"See…you don't have to fake it anymore." He said, trying to make her understand that he meant so much more than just the job.

Andy smiled and rolled her eyes as Sam chuckled. They stared at each other for what seemed like hours, each silently willing the other to say what they both wanted to hear.

Sam knew she wasn't going to, and although he wanted to, his eye caught sight of Callahan first. She was still with Luke and as much as Sam would have liked to, he had no right to say anymore.

So he did what he always did; he stood aside. "Uh…I should uh…get in there and give a statement." _It was probably for the best_ _anyway_.

Andy nodded. "All right."

"See you tomorrow? …Copper."

"See you tomorrow." Andy confirmed.

She turned and watched him walk away as he passed Luke coming towards her.

"He's ok...you had his back." Luke commended.

Still playing the part she convinced herself was perfect for her, she nodded. "Yeah…thank you for having mine."

She lifted her head to Luke and he slid his hands under her jacket to embrace her. She was going to say more but before she could, she let out a whimper of pain. As her eyes rolled back, she collapsed in Luke's arms.

That was unexpected; he guessed that she had just been overcome by the enormity of the situation and fainted. Until he remembered that she had whimpered too. _Was she hurt?_

He laid her gently on the ground and pulled his hands back to brush her hair from her face. It was then that he realized that one of his arms was covered in blood. "Officer down. Officer Down. I need a medic."

Sam had not yet made it back into the building before he recognized Luke's panicked voice. _Officer down?_ He had just seen him and everything had been under control. _What happened?_

Sam turned around, but couldn't see Callahan anywhere so he jogged back towards where he had passed him and saw Luke on the ground with Andy.

Sam broke into a run stopping just short of Luke. Now was not the time to worry about manners. "What the hell happened?"

Sam's eyes widened as Luke raised his blood stained arm. He looked up, his face completely blank. "I think she was shot."

* * *

I don't even know if it's physically possible to not know you were shot, but I liked the idea that she was so focused on Sam that she had no idea she was even hurt. I thought about Benny not even knowing he had a bullet in his head so I was hoping it was just believable enough.

I Googled it and found a few instances where people didn't know they had been stabbed or shot; maybe she should have realized sooner, but her mind was anywhere but on herself during this time. You could see it on her face.

And, hey...it is fiction right?


	2. Chapter 1

Thank you to everyone who supported the plausibility of my idea, especially those who shared personal stories to support it. Much appreciated.

Thanks for the reviews and alerts.

And to mamaverd…see I promised she would not be asking Luke "When do we get our keys?" ;)

* * *

Sam broke into a run stopping just short of Luke. Now was not the time to worry about manners. "What the hell happened?"

Sam's eyes widened as Luke raised his blood stained arm. He looked up, his face completely blank. "I think she was shot."

"What?" Sam was stunned; he had just talked to her barely 2 minutes ago. "When?"

"It must have happened back at the Mermaid." Luke guessed.

The surprise on Sam's face was matched only by the level of anger in his voice. "And you brought her here? What the hell were you thinking? Why didn't you take her to the hospital?"

Luke and Sam had never really seen eye to eye, on anything, and that was never more apparent than when Andy was involved. But where normally Luke would have snapped back at Sam in anger, he was still fighting his own shock. Instead he shrugged his shoulders and spoke softly, almost in answer to himself. "We didn't know."

Sam could not believe his ears. _Maybe if you paid attention once in a while… _"What do you mean you didn't know?"

Luke had broken out of his haze and was getting fed up with Swarek's holier than thou attitude. "We didn't know, and she didn't say." Luke replied defensively, and busied himself with applying pressure to Andy's wound.

Unfortunately, the last ambulance on scene had just left to take Chris to the hospital so they were stuck waiting for another bus to come. He would have to do the best he could until it arrived.

Sam's limited supply of patience was already running out though, and it wasn't going to be pretty when he hit empty. His jaw was tight as he clenched his fists, ready to explode if he didn't find some way to release the pressure. But there were no lockers to be found, so he was scanning for the next best thing. His gaze landed on the nearest squad car, when Noelle jogged up followed by Boyd, their faces a mix of surprise and guilt.

They had heard Luke yelling earlier, and came back as soon as they could to find out what happened. It didn't take a rocket scientist. Andy was on the ground injured and Sam was about to go ballistic; their minds reluctantly returned to the episode at the Mermaid. _Shit – the gunshot!_

Noelle knew she couldn't get through to Sam when he was like this; she needed his attention and for that he needed to be calm – or at least calm**er**. She had to get him to start acting like a cop instead of a jealous boyfriend. "Swarek!"

He didn't even turn around. "Swarek!" She yelled again, and forced him to look at her. "Get a hold of yourself."

He flipped around so fast; Noelle instinctively lifted her hands up in defense. He was just about to lash out when realization dawned on him. He lowered his hand and slowly pinched the bridge of his nose before taking a deep breath. The anger was leaving him, but it was replaced by something even stronger…anguish.

He looked his friend in the eye and shook his head as he begged quietly for an answer. "What the hell happened, Noelle?"

"We were sitting outside waiting, and we heard the gunshot just before Andy came out to tell us you were going to be made. I asked her about the shot but she said to let the other team handle it. She never said anything about being hit." Noelle swore.

"Hell, maybe she didn't even know it herself. She was so hyped up on adrenaline and getting you safe; she may not have even realized it." She added.

Sam nodded. "So it was right after I left then? She must have come out pretty fast if you guys weren't in there yet."

Noelle looked around, trying to find the best way to explain it while still keeping Sam calm. She didn't want to be the one to tell him that they had left Andy in there alone and unarmed. It had not been her call; if it was, it would have happened differently. But either way she had still sat safely in the vehicle while Andy was left alone.

Sam knew that look; he'd seen it on Noelle before and he'd used it himself. She was trying to find a way to be diplomatic, preparing to tell someone something they didn't want to hear. When she turned her face back to him, he pleaded. "Tell me you didn't leave her in there. Noelle…you went in for her…right?"

"OK." She said as she released a breath.

It wasn't an answer to his question. It sounded like the beginning of an excuse, and Sam could already tell by the tone of her voice that he wasn't going to buy it. But he still needed to know and so he tried to be patient.

She watched and waited as he steadied himself to listen. "You walked out and gave us the sign. Boyd confirmed that it meant the deal was still in play, but we had no idea where the hell you were going. Luke wondered where McNally was but I told him I didn't know. She didn't come out with you or after you; we couldn't see her."

"I radioed for Alpha 2 and Alpha 6 to follow your car." Noelle didn't want to throw the other two under the bus, but she wasn't about to take the fall for them either. "That's when I said we needed to go in."

Sam straightened up, anxious to hear what happened after they went in…until he remembered that they didn't actually **go **in after her. His shoulders slumped again and he dropped his eyes to his feet, watching them trace patterns in the dirt as he listened.

Noelle looked at Boyd before continuing; he'd better be ready to face the fallout after she dropped this one on Sammy. "But Boyd said we had no sign and no deal. I questioned him on that – so we were just going to leave McNally in there with no backup? When he didn't respond, I asked Luke."

Sam's heart was racing and he was having trouble taking a steady breath. He was sure he already knew what Luke had decided, but he wasn't sure if he was ready to have his worst fears confirmed. _Did Luke not care about her at all? Nothing should have been more important than Andy's safety. Screw the f-ing op! _He kept his eyes on the ground, trying to maintain some measure of control.

Noelle was keeping a close eye on Sam as she continued. "Luke said she knew what she was doing and we had to trust that."

She could see the tension take over Sam's shoulders. Knowing his history with Luke, she wanted to give Luke the benefit of the doubt and at least try to lessen Sam's wrath. "I'm sure it was a tough call for him – he had to weigh his personal relationship with…"

But Sam interrupted. "I don't need the commentary Noelle. Just stick with the play by play." He wasn't about to afford Luke any leeway.

"It was Boyd's call." Noelle deflected while passing Boyd an apologetic look. "Till the deal gets done, we sit tight. And that's what we were doing when we heard the gunshot. We jumped out of the car, and next thing we knew Andy was running towards us."

Sam slowly lifted his head, his eyes looking dark and dangerous. "So you left her in there without backup." It wasn't a question; it was a statement of fact.

He was beyond angry and they all knew it, which made his show of calm even scarier as he moved to get into Boyd's face. "If you would have done your damn jobs and gone in, she would be fine right now."

Noelle tried to rationalize with him. "But Sam, if we had gone in, **you** wouldn't be standing here right now. McNally's the one that found out; **she** told us you were going to be made."

He turned quickly and took 2 steps toward her. With just inches between them, he looked Noelle right in the eye and challenged her. "You don't think I would trade places with her in a second?"

Sam prided himself on his undercover skills and his ability to keep his feelings in check, but you can't hide something that powerful. Whether they acknowledged it or not, everyone knew Sam had strong feelings for Andy.

There was no doubt in Noelle's mind – he would absolutely take Andy's place, and in a heartbeat.

Luke had stayed quiet throughout Noelle's explanation, but his patience was starting to wear thin too. "Where the hell are the medics?" Luke yelled.

Sam crouched down and you could see the war raging in his mind; he wanted so badly to reach out and touch her, hold her. He had to do something.

"I'll take her myself." He decided as he shifted to lift her from Luke.

Noelle grabbed his arm. "Sam, that won't help. You can't give her what she needs right now."

_Yeah, but I could sure as hell try._

"Here they come." Boyd said with relief. Though he couldn't have known, he was still feeling more than a little guilty.

The medics rushed out to Andy and with practiced moves, she was ready and in the back within minutes. Luke had just gotten to his feet, but he made no motion towards the door when Andy was lifted on.

Sam dropped his chin and looked at him, incredulous. _He should have been up there the second they put Andy in. Hell, he should have been in there waiting_. He flipped his hand towards the ambulance. "Aren't you going with?" He asked Luke.

Luke hesitated for a split second. But that was a second too long for Sam. _What is there to think about?_

Sam scoffed and started to push Luke aside to get to Andy. "Fine…I am."

Luke grabbed his arm and pulled him back before jumping in beside her. "She's not your girlfriend."

_Dammit! You think I don't know that. _The doors closed behind Luke, protecting him from the daggers shooting from Sam's eyes.

The ambulance started pulling away, and Sam could feel the tug in his chest as his heart left with it. He felt helpless, and he hated it. There was no way he could stay there. He turned to Noelle. "I need a car...I have to go." He no longer worried about giving his statement; to hell with standard procedure.

Noelle didn't think Sam was in the right frame of mind to drive anywhere, at least not safely. "Let me take you." She offered.

"No."

He wasn't sure how much longer he could keep it together, and he didn't want company if and when he lost it; so he fed her the best excuse he could come up with. "You have to let Best know, and you should tell the rest of the rookies too. They'll probably go to the hospital to see Chris anyway, but they need to know about McNally before they get there."

"Make sure you tell Nash first." He added. She was Andy's best friend; she deserved to hear it first.

Noelle was torn. She knew someone had to tell Best and unfortunately she was the one with the most information. But she was worried about Sam and even more importantly, worried about what might happen if he was alone with Callahan at the hospital.

"I'm fine." He promised, before pleading, "just get me some keys and let me go."

Noelle knew him well enough to know he wouldn't take no for an answer. She looked at Boyd and raised her eyebrows in question; it was the least he could do.

He begrudgingly threw his keys at Sam, who took off at a run. Noelle shook her head. "Oh get over it; I'll take you to pick it up as soon as we're done here."

* * *

It took Noelle a few minutes to locate Nash & Epstein; they were sitting on the back of a squad car when she finally found them. Epstein had just hung up the phone. "That was Gail; Chris is going to be all right. He lost a lot of blood but it's ok." Dov explained.

Noelle could tell they were happy for Chris, but she was about to burst their bubble. "You may want to head over to the hospital right away."

"We can stay if you need us. Chris will be fine and we can check on him later." Dov assured her.

"Thanks, but you need to go check on McNally too." Noelle revealed.

"Wh-what do you mean?" Traci stuttered out.

Noelle gave them a quick rundown, watching the color drain from their faces with every word. She found them a cruiser and told them she would check in with them later. She watched as they sped away, before turning to call Best.

* * *

Traci called Jerry on her way to the hospital; he was already back at the barn to question Rick.

Jerry tried to console her as best as he could over the phone, but he knew he wasn't doing a very good job. Unfortunately, he couldn't leave; he needed to get Rick's statement before he could go anywhere. He was actually hoping they'd get Sam's statement tonight too, but as soon as heard what happened with Andy he knew he wouldn't be getting anything from Sam for awhile. He promised Traci he would meet her there just as soon as he was done with Rick.

Jerry sat across from Rick in Interrogation 1, as Rick replayed the events from beginning to end, starting with the moment when 'Gabe' and 'Edie' arrived.

Rick was reluctant at first, but this wasn't Jerry's first day either. He made sure Rick knew that his best bet was to cooperate; they would be confirming everything with Sam and McNally as soon as they could.

Rick walked him through the entire discussion, outlining everything that happened before 'Gabe' and Angel left, and throwing in his two cents whenever he could. "I still can't believe they were cops; man the way she talked about him and the way they kissed…" Jerry's eyebrows shot up. _I wonder how Sammy orchestrated that one._

"And she was on me the minute they left. Asking me where they were going and how far away it was. She started treating me like a kid and I didn't like it. You should have seen her face when I told her Landry was in town. I thought I had her with that one, until she dropped the bomb on me and said she was leaving."

"I told her not to go and I told her I didn't want to shoot her, but she didn't stop. Then she said they were cops and I would go to jail. I didn't want to go to jail, but I still didn't want to shoot her…but she wouldn't stop. Wouldn't you stop if someone was pointing a gun at you?" He asked Jerry.

"Shoot me or let me walk out; she actually said that to me. It didn't matter what I was going to do, she wasn't going to stay." Rick was adamant.

Jerry had questioned a lot of witnesses and always tried to remain impartial, but Rick's declaration threw him. It was pretty obvious by that statement that Sam's life meant more to Andy than her own. Jerry always knew there was something between them; he just didn't know exactly what it was. But he always resented McNally for the way she treated his friend. He just assumed that she didn't really care about Sam or his feelings, but he knew now that he was dead wrong.

"I couldn't believe it when she turned her back on me. It didn't matter to her that I might shoot her." Rick was still stunned.

"But I swear I didn't mean to shoot at her; I just panicked and it went off." He was getting flustered now. "I don't think I hit her though; I wasn't even looking at her and I wasn't planning to shoot. I saw her flinch but she just kept walking. She would've dropped if I hit her. Right?" Rick wondered.

"Well, Rick, it's probably a good thing you weren't planning it because even without meaning to, you have a pretty good shot. Officer McNally is in the hospital now and you better hope that she's going to be OK."

Rick was floored. How much trouble had he gotten himself into?

Jerry clarified a few more details with Rick before sending him to lockup; Rick wasn't going anywhere tonight. If he needed more information, Jerry would get it in the morning. Right now, he wanted to get to the hospital; he needed to see how Traci was holding up and he had to talk to Sam.

He stopped to make a quick copy of his notes; they would have to do until the official statement was typed up. Sam needed to see this.


	3. Chapter 2

When Sam got to the hospital he was directed to a waiting room and told that a doctor would come and speak to 'them' as soon as possible. _'Them'….great._

He walked into the room and his eyes were immediately met by Luke's. Sam's jaw clenched and he took 2 menacing steps towards Luke preparing to let him know just what he thought about him and his so called backup tonight. But then he stopped.

He took a deep breath to consider what he wanted to say, but instead of helping to organize his thoughts it just served to fuel his anger. _He left Andy in there! I could have lost her because he didn't care enough about the woman who was supposed to be his girlfriend._

The rage in Sam's eyes was growing and he started towards Callahan again. He took 2 more steps before he flopped down into the nearest chair, exhaling loudly. He wanted nothing more than to tell Luke what a pathetic excuse for a boyfriend he was, but now was definitely not the time or place. _Some day!_

They sat on opposite sides of the room, trying to look anywhere but at each other.

Sam was angry and Luke knew it; Sam had made it perfectly clear what he thought of their decision to leave Andy alone with Rick.

Luke, on the other hand, wasn't sure what he felt. Sure he was angry at Sam, but he was always angry at Sam; now he was trying to decide why. Was it because Sam was second guessing his actions? Was it because Sam blamed Luke and Luke was trying not to blame himself? Was it because his girlfriend was in the hospital because of Sam – injured trying to protect him? Or was it because Sam was reacting so strongly about Andy? He had never seen Sam this upset about any other cop.

So Luke was a mixture of anger, guilt, and jealousy, but every single emotion was tied to the man sitting across the room. And he definitely wanted nothing to do with him.

Thankfully, they weren't alone long, as the room quickly started to fill with other officers. Dov and Traci were the first to arrive, and from the looks of them, they weren't coping very well either.

Sam let them know that they hadn't heard anything yet, so they sat down to wait. Traci was crying into Dov's shoulder as he looked around uncomfortably. Just when it seemed like she was settling down, she would let out another sob and start again. Dov was doing his best to soothe her, rubbing her shoulder, and telling her it would be OK.

Every few seconds, his gaze would land on Sam. Sam could feel it every time, and he would look up only to have Dov glance quickly away.

Sam was having a hard enough time handling things without Epstein's scrutiny. _Was he waiting for Sam to lose it? Trying to tell if the tough guy was about to break down? Did he want to talk? What?_

Sam finally couldn't take it anymore. "Spit it out Epstein."

"Can you…uh…take over, Sir?" He motioned to Traci. "I promised I would go see Chris when we got here, and well, I…I don't think Traci can…well, someone should…"

Sam wanted to help Traci; he did. But he really wasn't sure he had the strength to do it. He was barely holding himself together as it was; how in the world could he hold her together too. But he wasn't about to tell Epstein that.

"Um…yeah, OK…just give me a minute. I'm going to run to the washroom and then I'll take over for you." He walked away, waving off Dov's profuse thanks.

Sam went into the washroom and locked the door. He tried to take a deep breath, and he was shocked when it came out sounding almost like a sob. He really was losing it. _I have to be strong for Andy. _But that thought was just about his undoing, reminding him that she was the reason he was here.

He had to pull himself together and relax. When he was finally able to take that deep breath and compose himself, he quickly splashed cold water on his face, put on his brave front and headed back out.

As soon as he got back to the waiting room, Dov extricated himself from Traci and motioned for Sam to take his place. Dov asked Traci to text him when they got any news. She had stopped crying, but now she was staring blankly at the wall. When she didn't acknowledge Dov, Sam assured him they would.

Traci looked up at Sam as he sat down and put his arm awkwardly around her. She tried to smile her thanks, but Sam had to look away. He didn't want to think about why she was like this, and he definitely did not want to see the fear in her eyes.

Sam sat there stiffly, praying that Jerry would get there soon. Nash may have been dating one of his best friends, but they weren't close, and she was losing it. She wasn't hysterical, but this was almost worse. She sat beside him sniffling quietly, and every so often he felt her shoulders shake against him as she tried not to cry again.

Sam was not good at this and if he was comforting anyone he wanted it to be Andy. But she was Andy's best friend, and if this was all he could do at the moment, he would do it for Andy. He didn't have to like it, but he wouldn't let her down. He never wanted to let her down.

Shortly after Dov left, a doctor came to the waiting room and looked up not really sure who to even address, there were a number of officers waiting. "This may be a silly question, but who is here for Andy McNally?"

Everyone stood up, but Sam, Luke and Traci moved towards the doctor so he spoke to them. "Officer McNally is still sedated and she will likely be out for a bit longer. The bullet hit her in the side just below the shoulder blade, and thankfully did not hit any major organs." He reported. "Her wound would not have been life threatening if it had been treated right away."

Sam couldn't help it as his anger flared again. He glowered another 'maybe if you paid attention' at Luke, who looked purposefully at the doctor, choosing to ignore Sam's contempt.

The doctor continued. "Unfortunately, because it **wasn't** treated right away, she lost more blood than was necessary and now there's also a risk of infection. She is currently fighting a high fever, but we are treating her with antibiotics. More tests will be run to rule out septicemia, blood poisoning."

Sam's blood wasn't poisoned, but it was definitely boiling. _I had to leave to save the deal, but I left Andy with backup. I left her in their hands…in his hands. And what does he do? He lets her get shot. And then the bastard can't even tell that his own girlfriend is hurt. I trusted Callahan to keep her safe. I should have known better; he's never been there for her. Why the hell did I have to leave her alone?_

"Can we see her?" Traci asked tearfully.

Sam was snapped from his thoughts waiting anxiously for the doctor's response.

"She's still unconscious, but yes you can go in one at a time. Who would like to go first?"

Instead of answering the question, Luke stepped forward and chose to respond with "I'm her boyfriend," as he took the opportunity to return Sam's previous glare. He was almost defiant in his stance as he sent a look to Sam that practically screamed 'she's mine and I have the right to go in first', almost daring Sam to contradict him.

It took all of Sam's willpower not to slam him against the wall and physically wipe the smugness off his pretty boy face. _He should have lost that right the second he let Andy get hurt._

"Don't take too long." Traci begged.

Luke set aside his anger with Sam and nodded respectfully to Traci as he followed the doctor.

With Luke out of the room, Sam started to calm down. Traci sat beside him again while they waited and he could tell that she was barely holding it together. Sam desperately wanted to go in next, but he knew Traci needed to see her friend too. As much as it hurt, Sam was always a gentleman, so when Luke returned 10 minutes later, he told Traci to go.

She jumped up and almost hugged him she was so grateful. But instead she just gave him a small smile and when he looked at her she saw the pleading in his eyes. In silent conversation, he asked and she answered, her eyes promising him she wouldn't take too long either. Luke gave her the room number and she went back.

After sending a quick text to Dov, Sam watched every minute pass on the clock. _How long was Traci going to be in there? _He had to see for himself that Andy was OK. It had been almost 10 minutes and Sam was considering going anyway, when he saw Traci returning. He stood up and moved quickly to go back, when Tommy McNally appeared in the entrance to the waiting room. _Dammit._

He saw Traci too. "How is she?"

"She's still sedated, but they're allowing us back one at a time." She answered.

Tommy noticed Sam standing there and realized by the look on Sam's face that he was hoping to see Andy next. But Tommy didn't even have to ask, Sam just waved him back.

"Thanks, Swarek. I won't be long." He promised.

Sam dropped down next to Traci with a sigh. Now that she'd seen Andy she seemed to be a little better, but she still leaned into Sam, so he reluctantly put his arm around her again.

True to his word, Tommy was back within 5 minutes, but not by choice. Andy's fever was still high, and he had been asked to leave while they ran a few more tests. He sat back down to join the waiting crowd, including a defeated Sam who had just gotten his hopes dashed once again.

Tommy had just sat down, when Jerry arrived with Oliver in tow. Traci jumped up to hug Jerry and brought him up to speed on Andy and Chris. Jerry and Oliver sat down on either side of Sam, both giving their friend the once over.

Jerry had never seen Sam like this before; Sam never lost his poker face…ever. But tonight it was not holding up well. Jerry exchanged a look with Shaw to confirm that he wasn't seeing things. From the look Oliver gave him, he was thinking the same thing. Their friend was teetering on the edge.

Jerry wasn't quite sure where to begin; he really didn't know what his report would do to Sam. Would it help? Would he feel better? Would he feel guilty? Would it push him over the edge? Jerry had no idea how Sam would react…but he did know that Sam needed to hear it.

"Sammy." Jerry beckoned.

When Sam looked up tiredly, he continued. "I finished my interview with Rick before I came over; I thought you might want to read what happened."

He tentatively offered the papers to Sam.

"I'll take that." Luke snapped. He had stalked over and grabbed the copy from Jerry. _If anyone wants to read it, it's me _His sense of entitlement reared its ugly head again.

Jerry moved to protest, not sure what Callahan was getting himself into. But Luke wasn't asking for permission. _Be careful what you wish for. _Luke was definitely in for an eye-opener.

Sam was exhausted and overwrought, and the last thing he cared about was what Rick had to say. "I'll see it later."

Jerry nudged Sam to get him to look at him. "Here's my note pad; I really think you should take a look at it."

The nurses had told Tommy the tests would take about a half hour so it was obvious that Sam wasn't going to get in to see Andy for awhile. Sam shot Jerry a questioning look before deciding to take his friends advice; he trusted Jerry, and Jerry was pretty insistent that he should read it. _There must be something in there I need to know. _

Before he could start reading, a young nurse came out. "Is there a Sam out here?"

Sam stood up quickly, looking worried. "Yes…that's me."

"Oh…OK, thank you." That was all she said before turning to leave.

"What? Wait a minute." Sam exploded, jumping up to follow her. "You can't just come out here and ask a question like that and then walk away without explaining." Sam was getting angry and Jerry stood up quickly to try and calm him down. He placed a hand on Sam's shoulder, silently persuading him to reign it in a little.

"I'm sorry." The nurse apologized. "It's just Miss McNally keeps waking up and…"

"What?" Sam exclaimed, not letting her finish. _I can't believe it. _Sam was upset and when he was upset he had no filter or volume control. "She's awake… and you didn't…" He was yelling now.

Luke's head snapped up and he moved closer to listen intently as the nurse explained. _Did Andy ask for Sam? Why was she talking to Sam and not me?_

The nurse put her hand gently on Sam's arm, waiting for him to quiet his movements. "Please…let me finish. She **has** been waking up but only for a few seconds at a time."

Sam stilled, barely daring to breathe.

"But every time she wakes up she says the same thing. She gets very agitated and asks 'where's Sam? Is Sam OK?' Then she answers herself. 'He's ok. I saw him. He's ok.' And then she's out again."

Sam was floored. He didn't know what to think. It made him feel good to know that she was worried about him, but he still didn't know exactly what that meant, if anything.

Luke continued to scour Jerry's notes. Between Rick's statement and the nurse's report, Luke was beginning to realize just how deep Andy's feelings were for Sam. He knew she cared about Sam; that had always been obvious. And know he knew the feelings ran deep, but just exactly what were they? Simple concern for her partner? Or was it more?

The nurse continued to Sam. "I just wanted to know that you were OK; I feel better for her knowing that you're OK. Now when she does finally come out of it, I can tell her that you're fine. I don't want her to be upset; she needs to stay calm so she can help her body heal."

Sam stared back at her with conviction. "You won't have to tell her I'm fine; **I'll be here**."

Luke was not impressed. _And just exactly what were Sam's feelings? Simple concern for his partner? Or was it more?_

"Are the tests almost done?" Tommy asked, pulling everyone's minds back from their own thoughts.

"We need about 20 more minutes and the next visitor can go in? Will you be going back again?" She asked Tommy.

Sam looked anxiously up at Tommy, almost pleading.

"No, I'll go in later. Swarek, you're her partner; why don't you go next." Tommy suggested.

Sam shot him a grateful look and a small smile. "Thanks." He sat down calmer knowing that he would be seeing Andy in 20 minutes.

He started to read through Jerry's notes, his eyes widening with every sentence. Although Andy had never admitted it, he knew she cared about him. He just didn't realize how much. He knew he would give up his life for her, but he didn't know the feeling was mutual. _She was with Luke, and she hadn't given in to any feelings for Sam. Maybe she didn't even realize how much she cared until she was faced with the probability of his death._

He looked at Jerry and then at Oliver, who had read it on the way over. "I know brother." Oliver said, shaking his head.

Sam then looked across the room knowing Luke had seen the report too. He saw Luke staring at him and studying his reaction. Sam didn't know what Luke was expecting to see. Was he waiting for Sam to gloat?

After years of practice, Sam kept his face neutral now trying to read Luke. Was he mad, resigned, or defensive? He didn't really know what Luke was thinking; he had schooled his features too. But he did know that Luke had to have realized that Andy cared much more for Sam than she had let on. The question on both their minds was what were they going to do about it? And what was Andy going to do when she woke up?

Sam sat lost in his thoughts until the last of the 20 minutes had passed; he stood up and headed back. He was well aware of the disdain on Callahan's face as he walked out.

Sam knocked on the door and the nurse told him to come in; they had just finished. Andy was still asleep so Sam sat down and took her hand. He wasn't really sure what to say; he really wanted to talk to her, but he wanted answers more than he wanted to talk.

"McNally…Andy."

She started to stir at the sound of his voice. He froze.

She settled down again and he started to rub his thumb against the back of her hand. He heard her sigh in contentment, bringing a small smile to his face.

"Sam." She murmured. "…You're ok."

It was like she was replaying their earlier conversation, so he just went with it. "Yeah…thanks to you. You were great in there." But there wasn't as much conviction in his words this time; she wasn't doing great now.

Andy smiled; still only partially aware. "Thanks."

She seemed to be coming around so Sam pushed his luck, trying to get her to fully awaken. He nudged her. "McNally? Andy?"

She slowly opened her eyes to see Sam's face. She slowly reached her hand up to cup his cheek. "You're OK." Even now, it was the only thought on her mind.

He held her hand to his face. "I'm OK…thanks to you. But Andy you took a big chance in there today."

She looked embarrassed as if she'd been reprimanded; she hated to disappoint him. "He was scared and inexperienced. I had to take the chance."

"You shouldn't have done it." He was trying not to get angry, but he needed her to know that it was too big of a risk.

"I didn't have a choice Sam; you were going to be made. They would have killed you." She replied breathlessly.

"But Andy you could have been killed...you almost were." He choked out.

"You're just lucky he's such a bad shot." He added, trying to relieve some of the tension that had built up.

"Andy I understand that you wanted to help me, and I lo-…appreciate that, but why didn't you tell them you were shot. As soon as you told Noelle that I would be made, they called in back up to come get me. You could have told them and gone to the hospital then."

"Is that why I'm here?" She asked. "Did he actually shoot me?"

Sam was shocked. _She really didn't know._

"Yes, Andy. Rick shot you."

Her mouth dropped open with a simple "oh." She was completely taken aback.

She shook her head, staring at the wall. "I really didn't know – I was so focused on making sure you were safe. I knew that it hurt, but it already hurt. As soon as I found out that you would be made, I couldn't get enough air. I tried to breathe, but my heart was beating so fast. When I thought about losing you, all I could feel was a sharp pain in my chest. The ache when I left was almost unbearable, but I just thought it was because I knew you were about to be killed."

Her face reddened as she looked down at her hands. "I don't think I really felt anything until I was relieved that you were safe."

She stole a glance at Sam then and he was watching her intently. They hadn't really talked about their feelings…well, ever. He was always pushing her back to Luke, and she always let him, so she wasn't even sure how he felt. She knew he cared; yet how much, she didn't know. But she had made her feelings pretty obvious now so she wanted to tell him why she did what she did.

Years of protecting her heart had her holding back though so she dropped her eyes back down to her hands. "Sam, if you died; I couldn't go on. I can't lose you…and there was nothing worth letting that happen. I had to save you." There, she said she cared without saying what she really meant; hoping for him to give her something back before she threw it all out there.

He lifted her chin to look at him and she was surprised to see his eyes were a little glassy. "Andy, if you died..." But he couldn't say the words out loud, because he didn't even want to think about that happening.

He looked away, and it took him a few seconds to recover enough to speak in a somewhat normal voice. He caught her gaze again. "Please don't ever do something like that again. Your life is too important to me."

It was something, but she was still disappointed that he didn't give anything away either. So she made up her mind; someone had to go first.

Unfortunately though, she was losing steam, her body still needing most of her energy to fight the infection. She really needed to get it out though. "Don't you see, Sam?" She closed her eyes, her voice fading. "I had to save you or my life would be over anyway."

"Andy, you need to rest; we can talk about this later." It was not his first choice, but he could tell her strength was waning.

"Sam…" she muttered, her eyes still closed.

"Rest, Andy."

"But, Sam…I think…I mean…I lo…" She didn't finish; she had lost consciousness again. Bells and alarms suddenly disrupted the silence that had engulfed them.

And the nurses started rushing in.

* * *

**Right back at you, Tina.**


	4. Chapter 3

Thanks for all the reviews. Hope you enjoy this next chapter.

* * *

"Andy, you need to rest; we can talk about this later." It was not his first choice, but he could tell her strength was waning.

"Sam…" she muttered, her eyes still closed.

"Rest, Andy."

"But, Sam…I think…I mean…I lo…" She didn't finish; she had lost consciousness again. Bells and alarms suddenly disrupted the silence that had engulfed them.

And the nurses started rushing in.

Sam was only vaguely aware of his surroundings, barely registering the actions of the nurses who were bustling around Andy. He was trapped by his own thoughts. _Was she about to say I love you?_

"Her fever spiked again." One of the nurses said to Sam. "You need to leave now."

When he didn't move, another nurse tugged on his arm and led him out of the room. She could see he was in shock, but she didn't realize that it was because of what Andy said, not because of what was happening. She spoke gently. "Please go back to the waiting room; we've paged the doctor. He'll come out and talk to you once he's had a chance to look at Miss McNally."

Sam nodded absently, switching to autopilot to get to the waiting room. When he reached his friends, everyone stood up, shocked by the expression on Sam's face. It was totally blank, as if he could not believe what he had just been witness to. One look at him and Traci started to fall apart again. _Oh God. Something bad happened._

Jerry put his arm around Traci. He was about to ask Sam what was going on, but Frank beat him to it; he and Noelle had arrived just after Sam had gone in to see Andy.

"Swarek…" Frank had to call him twice before Sam even looked up. "Swarek..."

Sam looked around, surprised to find himself there; he had no recollection of walking back. "Huh?"

The room was mostly empty now; most of the officers had left, with only Best, the TO's and Andy's closest friends remaining.

"Is McNally OK?" Frank asked, concern apparent in his voice. "What happened?"

Sam shook his head to clear his thoughts. "I went to see Andy and she woke up. We talked about what went down at the Mermaid, until she started getting tired. I told her to rest, but she had something she wanted to tell me, and she just sort of passed out before she could finish. Next thing I know, the nurses started rushing in and one of them pushed me out."

Luke started yelling, "What the hell do you mean they rushed in? Didn't you call them as soon she woke up?"

Sam looked around sheepishly. He hadn't thought to do that; he was just so happy to be able to talk to Andy and know that she was OK.

Sam tried to explain, now worried that he had done something to harm her. "No, we just started talking and I never really thought…"

"Yeah well, maybe you should think once in awhile instead of relying on that gut you're so fond of." Luke spit out. He was not happy. _And he thought I didn't pay attention._

"And why the hell didn't you let Tommy talk to her when he came to take your place. He **is** her father; you should have come back so he could have been the one to talk to her." Luke was beyond mad.

Sam had no idea Tommy had even come to see Andy; he never saw him. Sam looked up at Tommy, confused. But the look Tommy sent back said it all – he **had** come to see Andy, but when he heard her talking to Sam, he obviously chose not to interrupt.

And now that Tommy was well aware of how important Sam was to his daughter, he was going to stick up for him. "It's OK, son. You're her partner; that means something. I understand." And the way he stressed every word confirmed that he understood more than anyone else in that room.

Tommy may have been willing to cut Sam some slack, but Callahan wasn't about to; he was still livid and more than a little jealous. "Fine, but she's **my** girlfriend; you should have come to get me then."

_Yeah, right; like I would ever walk away from Andy for you. Oh. Well, not anymore._

Frank knew this could get out of hand fast if he didn't calm things down. He forced everyone to sit, including Sam. "OK, did the nurses tell you anything before you left?"

"They said that her fever had spiked again; they paged the doctor and she said they would send him out as soon as he had a chance to look at An…McNally." Sam reported.

"Fine, so now we wait." Frank instructed, and then he looked at every face in the room singling out both Sam and Luke "…patiently!" It was obviously an order, which Luke and Sam both took seriously.

Everyone could tell that Sam was preoccupied with thoughts of Andy; they were worried that he blamed himself for her passing out, so they left him alone. He was content to let them believe whatever they wanted; he just needed time to think. He sat barely moving, replaying every word she said to him.

After running it over and over in his head, he was almost certain that she was trying to say I love you. _But why couldn't she have gotten it all out? Why couldn't he just know for sure?_

The doctor returned about 20 minutes later and as soon as he entered, everyone jumped to their feet.

"It's OK, sit…everything is fine."

There was a communal sigh of relief.

"Miss McNally's fever spiked… which you know." He added quickly, halting Sam with his hand when he noticed him about to speak.

He continued. "In a case like Officer McNally's we are concerned about the infection and possible septic shock; the alarms were precautions. We need to know when her fever goes up so we can make sure she is still breathing well and that all of her organs are working properly. We did a thorough examination and everything is functioning normally. It's possible she just overdid it a little."

Luke was not about to let that go, fixing his stare on Sam. "She shouldn't have been talking." He then turned to the doctor; "you should have been called right away."

The doctor looked over at him, "Actually, no; it's fine. Her body is using up a lot of energy to fight the infection, but there's no reason why she can't talk when she wakes up. She just has to take it easy; she'll need to watch for the signs and remember to slow down or stop before she overexerts herself. But it's good for her to talk; it will bring her spirits up and help build her strength."

Sam didn't appreciate Luke's attitude earlier and turnabout is fair play, so he wasn't about to hold back either. The message was sent loud and clear when he glowered back at Luke. _See I didn't do anything wrong!_

Noelle just shook her head as she glanced between the two of them. _Seriously, boys? What is this? High school?_

Tommy broke up the pissing contest with a question. "Can we go back and see her again?"

"Absolutely, though she'll probably be asleep for awhile now."

"But…"

The doctor knew exactly what he was going to ask. "Yes, if she wakes up, let her talk if she wants; just don't let her do too much. If she takes it easy, she'll be fine. Just make sure she gets plenty of rest too."

"Is there anything else?" The doctor asked.

Best responded for everyone. "No, I think we're good. Thank you."

Tommy went back and sat quietly with Andy while she slept. Mindful of the others waiting, and knowing that she was likely not going to wake soon; he left again after 15 minutes. When he reached the waiting area, he did not go in. He stood in the doorway and let everyone know that she was still resting.

As Luke passed him to go see Andy again, Tommy motioned with his head for Sam to join him in the hallway. "Swarek…a minute?"

"Sure." Sam said reluctantly.

Sam decided to get straight to the point. "How much did you hear?"

"I heard her say how much she cares about you, how much you mean to her." Tommy informed him adding, "And how much she means to you too. Listen, I have to go; I have a meeting to get to. But…um…I know that…"

"What is it?" Sam asked.

"I don't want Andy to be alone tonight." He looked Sam straight in the eye. "Do I need to come back to stay with her?"

Sam knew he was asking much more than that, and Sam meant every word when he replied. "No…I won't leave her."

Tommy nodded. "OK, then…I'll be back tomorrow." He was happy knowing Andy was in good hands; he always respected Swarek. As a cop and as a man, he knew Sam would have Andy's back. He smiled and shook Sam's hand. "Take care of her for me."

Sam assured him he would, before heading back. He couldn't help but wonder though, why Tommy didn't ask Callahan about staying with her. Sure Tommy heard his conversation with Andy, but he must know that Luke was Andy's boyfriend. _Tommy was a good cop, and an even better detective, maybe he knew a lot more than he let on._

Before Sam could sit down, Jerry and Traci stood up; they needed to pick up Leo from his Grandma. Oliver decided to walk out with them; he needed to get home to Zoe and the girls too. He grabbed Sam's shoulder and Sam assured him that he would be OK.

Oliver knew Sam well, and he knew that his friend wasn't telling them everything. And that knowledge went both ways; Sam was well aware that Oliver could sense something, but neither one was ready to go there tonight.

"Talk to you tomorrow, Sammy." Oliver promised, with a look that told Sam he couldn't avoid it forever.

Sam rolled his eyes and shook his head, "Yeah...tomorrow."

Noelle and Frank went to see Chris and Gail, planning to check in with Sam before they left. Dov was going to stick around to see Andy before he called it a night too.

* * *

When Luke walked in to Andy's room, she was still sleeping. He grabbed her hand and started rubbing the back of it much the same as Sam had earlier.

"Sam?" Andy whispered. Luke grimaced.

When he didn't answer, Andy opened her eyes, trying to hide the disappointment.

"Luke." She was a bit embarrassed, and tried to cover up quickly. "I was just talking to Sam; I thought he was still here."

"He's gone." Luke said sharply.

Andy panicked; she was still a little disoriented. _Had she imagined that conversation with Sam? Had they been too late?_

Luke was bothered by Andy's reaction, and tried not think about what it might mean, but he still couldn't let her get worked up over it. "The nurses sent him out when your fever spiked." He clarified.

"Oh," she was completely relieved. She looked away trying to protect Luke from the feelings that had to be written all over her face.

"Andy, why didn't you tell us you were hit?" Luke inquired.

"I really didn't know, Luke. I was just so scared for Sam that…"

"I understand that you were scared for him; he's your partner. Of course, you wanted to back him up." Luke was laying it on thick, trying to convince both of them that the only reason she did what she did was because of the code – you back your partner up no matter what.

"But you need to protect yourself too." He reminded her.

Andy wasn't ready for this and she was getting restless, her anxiety making it harder for her to breathe. She really was exhausted; she knew she needed to have this conversation with Luke, but she just really did **not** want to have it now.

"I know, but I really had no idea." She defended.

"Andy, I care about you; we're moving in together, remember. I need you to be careful. Please don't ever do that again."

She had to stop him; she really couldn't go there. Less than an hour ago, she was telling Sam she couldn't live without him and now Luke wanted to talk about moving in together. She couldn't focus; she couldn't think well enough to handle this properly. She had to break it off, but she just didn't have it in her to do it today.

"Luke, I'm really tired." She replied, hoping he would take the hint.

The tone of her voice was telling; she was trying to avoid him. But he wanted to lay it all on the table.

"Andy, I just don't want anything to happen to you."

"Please, Luke." She closed her eyes hoping he would stop talking. When he tried again, she realized that she was just going to have to do it. In the state she was in, it was not going to be pretty. She wasn't even sure if it was going to make sense; her mind was a jumbled mess.

"Luke, I needed to save Sam; I couldn't let him die." She insisted, desperate for him to understand.

"I know that, you were worried about your partner."

_He was getting it wrong; it wasn't just because he was her partner. That's not it._

"You're a great cop Andy; you put your life on the line for people all the time. Of course, you would do that for Swarek. You stand behind your partner…always. But he's safe, and now you need to worry about getting better so we can move on from this."

"But, Sam…" She tried, her energy spent again.

Luke could tell that she was getting confused and he kept pushing it. "Sam is OK…thanks to you. You've done your job, now he can move on to."

_What did he mean Sam could move on? She didn't want Sam to move on; not without her._

The young nurse came in and could see that Andy was agitated and obviously exhausted. "I think you should let Miss McNally sleep now."

"OK, OK." He said to the nurse as he stood to leave.

"Andy, I have to get going. The nurse is right, you need to sleep."

"I need…" she mumbled, "…Sam"

He turned back. _Was she just talking about Sam or does she really think she needs him?_

"He's OK." She mumbled weakly. "Sam…"

"Rest, Andy."

That revived her a little. _She remembered this conversation from before. She needed to tell Sam before she fell asleep again. She had to get it all out this time._ "But, Sam…"

Luke was getting tired of this; she was just mixed up. He moved to go.

"…I love you." She finished quietly.

Luke was stunned. _She paused; right? She didn't actually say 'Sam I love you'. She paused. She had to be talking to him._ He tried not to think about the fact that she had never said it to him before.

Luke returned from Andy's room and Dov immediately jumped up before Luke had a chance to explain that Andy was asleep. He schooled his features quickly trying to hide his uncertainty.

"How is she? Did she wake up again?" Noelle asked, having come back from seeing Chris.

"Yes. We were able to talk for a bit." Luke replied, trying to avoid the details.

"Good." Frank said.

"Did she say anything about the op?" Noelle asked.

"Not much, she still insists she didn't realize she was shot."

"You look a bit shaken; did she say anything else?" Noelle wondered.

Sam was a captive audience, hanging on his every word, and Luke knew it. A plan immediately formed in his mind and he smiled. "Just before I left she said I love you," he bragged, watching Sam from the corner of his eye.

Sam couldn't stop the flash of anger that momentarily flooded his eyes. Though he tried to keep his face neutral, the war was still going on in his head. _Wasn't she going to say that to me? Was she delirious? If she was, was it now or when she said it to me? She didn't seem to be out of it when we talked…just tired?_

Luke had seen the flash in Sam's eyes, replaced by what he hoped was resignation. But he could still see the fight going on in Sam's brain. Luke was trying in vain to hold back his smirk. _Mission accomplished. That should back Swarek the hell off for awhile. _

Luke could see how his remark affected Sam and he was pretty proud of himself till he looked up at the entrance and the smug smile was wiped off his face. The young nurse from Andy's room had entered and she stared up at Luke visibly thrown.

She had been in the room and heard Andy speak; she also knew that Luke was not Sam. Luke frowned, blatantly ignoring her; but the message was loud and clear - 'mind your own business'. He turned away from her and into his thoughts. _Andy didn't know what she was saying; she cares about Sam, but it's not love. I just need to talk to her some more; she's confused. Too confused; she can't talk to Swarek again until I talk to her._

But the little exchange between Luke and the nurse did not go unnoticed. It was quick, but Sam had seen it. When she walked away, seemingly forgetting why she had come, Sam followed her.

Frank started to call him back but Sam held up a finger signally 1 minute.

He caught up to the nurse and touched her arm to get her to turn; she looked troubled.

"What was that all about?" Sam asked, trying to stay calm.

"Nothing; it's none of my business." She stuttered. She was young and still getting used to all the emotions that come from dealing with loved ones; she looked like she might even cry.

Sam didn't want to upset her but he had to find out. "Please…I need to know. Were you in there when he was talking to An…Officer McNally?"

"Yes, but just for a minute." She explained, trying to find a way out of the middle of this.

"Did you hear her say I love you when he was in there?" Sam inquired anxiously.

She couldn't lie. "Yes."

Sam wasn't sure if he really wanted to ask, but he had to know. "Was she out of it or did it sound like she really meant it?"

She could see the hurt in Sam's eyes and she was torn. _She didn't know if she was even allowed to answer these questions. She wasn't disclosing medical information, but she really didn't know what she could or should do. But she did know that if she just answered the question, he would never know the truth. Because as soon as she told him she thought Andy meant it he would be crushed and he wouldn't want to know any more. He probably wouldn't wait for her to explain; she remembered the way he reacted before._

He could see that something was holding her back; his gut was screaming at him. "OK...If you don't want to answer that question can you tell me this? Did you hear her say anything else?"

"Yes." She answered relieved.

"What was it?" Sam wondered.

"Just…a name."

_She said 'a name'. Why didn't she say the actual name? _Sam didn't know if she even knew Luke's name. He took a deep breath and glanced down, bracing himself to hear her next response. "Was it Luke?"

She shook her head but he wasn't looking. "No." She answered quietly.

His head snapped up and his eyes started to cloud. He had to clear his throat before wondering, "Was it Sam?"

She looked him in the eye and nodded.

_It was Sam…She said Sam. She loved Sam. She loves me. _

She could see the joy in his eyes as she walked away, and she couldn't help but feel some joy in her own heart.

But Sam's joy did not last when he remembered why he had followed the nurse in the first place. _Luke had made it sound like Andy loved him when he knew damn well that she didn't._

It took every ounce of Sam's self control not to go all retrain on Luke's ass again. But it didn't take long for Sam to realize that it wouldn't do any good anyway; _Callahan was only fooling himself._ All Sam could do was hope that Andy would set Luke straight...soon. And Sam would do whatever he could to make sure that happened.

Sam headed back to the room confident, knowing exactly what he was going to do. He loved Andy, and now that he knew she felt the same way, he would not be stepping aside again. Whether Callahan knew it or not, Sam was not going to give Andy up without a fight.


	5. Chapter 4

Thanks again for the reviews. I'm still not 100% sure on how to bring this to a close, but it looks like 1 more chapter and then an epilogue. I hope you continue to enjoy it.

* * *

Sam headed back to the room confident, knowing exactly what he was going to do. He loved Andy, and now that he knew she felt the same way, he would not be stepping aside again. Whether Callahan knew it or not, Sam was not going to give Andy up without a fight.

Sam was preoccupied when he approached the waiting room, still trying to sort out all the plans in his head. He knew that he promised Tommy he wouldn't leave Andy, but he also knew that if left now it would only be for a short time, and then he wouldn't have to leave her the rest of the night, or the next day while she was awake.

Callahan had gone to great lengths to make sure Sam thought that Andy loved Luke, and Sam could feel Luke's eyes on him as he entered. He was pretty sure that Luke was not going to leave Andy alone with him anyway. He had to make Luke think that he was leaving.

But Sam refused to leave Andy all alone, and he didn't trust Callahan not to leave as soon as he did so he had to find a way to cover his bases. _Epstein! He was in with Andy now_. Sam grabbed his phone and started texting.

_Epstein. Do not leave until I get back! If Luke wants to sit with Andy, go and wait somewhere till he leaves, but do NOT leave Andy alone, and do NOT let Callahan know why you are waiting. I WILL be back. Swarek._

Back in Andy's room, Epstein felt his phone buzz in his pocket and he looked completely bewildered when he saw who the text was from. _Swarek doesn't text me. _He was a little confused by the note but was not about to say no to Sam. And as much as he wanted to know what was going on, he was too afraid to ask. He simply texted back: _10-4._

Sam nodded to himself when he got the OK.

Everyone was scheduled to work again the next day, and most had already returned home. Sam made a show of talking to Frank and Noelle as they prepared to leave too. He tried to sound as defeated and exhausted as he could.

"Can I catch a ride back with you two? I just want to give my statement and pick up my truck so I can get to sleep." Sam asked yawning.

Luke was hanging on every word. _Finally! I need to get home and get some sleep too._

"Let's go!" Frank agreed. "Night, Luke. Let me know if anything changes."

Frank then turned to Sam on their way out the door. "You know you can give your statement tomorrow, Sam."

Sam stayed quiet, and as soon as they got outside, Noelle called him on his little production. "What was that all about?"

"I don't really want to get into it now; can we hurry?" Sam urged. "Noelle, can you take my statement on the way back to the barn?"

"I…I guess so." She consented. "But why can't you wait till we get there or when you come in tomorrow."

Sam looked over at Frank. "Because I'm not planning on coming in tomorrow."

"Oh?" Frank replied.

"I'm just going to the barn to pick up my truck, and I'm coming right back. I promised Tommy I would stay with Andy tonight."

Noelle and Frank weren't naive; they both knew that Sam had other reasons for wanting to stay with Andy. But they too weren't going to call him on that quite yet.

Sam continued. "Frank, I'd like to take a personal day tomorrow to stay with Andy. If I give my statement on the way back, it will save time and I won't have to go into the barn tonight or tomorrow."

"No problem." Frank knew that Sam would find a way to get there anyways. "Noelle?"

She grabbed her notebook. "Go."

Sam talked for the entire ride back to the barn, reporting everything from their arrival at the Mermaid up to his departure with Angel. Noelle just kept writing, doing her best to capture every detail so Sam wouldn't be called back tomorrow. The only time she paused was when Sam mentioned kissing Andy on his way out. She lifted her head, quickly dropping her chin as she raised her eyebrow at Sam. _You did what?_

Sam realized she had stopped writing and he turned in his seat just in time to catch the look. He simply pointed her back to the notepad and kept talking. Frank just chuckled under his breath as he drove.

When they reached the station, they sat for another 10 minutes in the parking lot as Sam provided the rest of the details from the warehouse and his short conversation with Andy afterward. As soon as he finished, Frank asked Sam to call in tomorrow to let him know how she was.

Sam smiled and shook his hand. "Thanks, Frank. I appreciate it." Frank was actually happy to do it. He had been friends with Sam for a long time, working with him for most of those years, and nothing had ever affected Sam like this. Things were about to change for his buddy, and Frank couldn't help but believe it was going to be for the better.

Sam jumped out of the vehicle and turned directly to his truck, before realizing he was going to have to go in. He ran straight to the locker room taking just enough time to change into normal clothes and grab his keys. He was back out and in his truck within 5 minutes.

* * *

Back at the hospital, Luke was elated the moment Sam walked out. _Hook…line…and sinker._

Now that Sam was out of the way, Luke was ready to call it a night too; he was exhausted. He decided to check on Andy one more time to make sure she was asleep and then he was heading home too.

He walked into her room and startled Epstein who was regaling a sleeping Andy like an excited little puppy, describing in detail his part in the huge bust. He jumped up as soon as he felt Luke's hand on his shoulder. "Why don't you head home Epstein."

Dov just nodded his head. "Sure. See you tomorrow, sir." And he walked out.

Luke stayed for only a few minutes, assured that Andy was asleep for the night. When Luke left Andy's room, he headed right to get to the exit without giving so much as a glance in the other direction. If he had, he would have noticed Epstein standing a few doors back playing covert ops, and hiding behind a magazine. As soon as Callahan was out of site, Dov strutted back into Andy's room proud as a peacock. "Nice, Epstein - totally stealth." He crowed.

Dov was starting to nod off when Sam made it back. He thanked Dov, quickly sending him on his way to avoid any conversation. He could tell Epstein wanted to discuss whatever was going on, but one look from Sam and Dov was stumbling for the door. "See you tomorrow, sir."

"I doubt it," Sam mumbled as he watched Dov exit.

Sam placed his hand gently over Andy's before leaning back; he was completely exhausted and promptly fell asleep in the chair. But his rest was short lived when the night nurse, Joanne, came in to check on Andy about an hour later. He was startled awake by the movement.

"You probably shouldn't be in here, Mister…?"

Sam wasn't about to budge.

"It's Sam, and I do a lot of things I probably shouldn't." He admitted with a quick flash of the dimples.

She looked away flushed; he wasn't averse to using them to get what he wanted but he also didn't want to appear to be flirting with another woman, especially in front of Andy - even if she was sleeping. "She's my partner; I really need to stay."

Joanne nodded. "I understand. You know we do have extra beds that we can bring in. Since Miss McNally is in a private room, and you are a police officer," she said with a wink. "We could probably bring one in here for you." Adding, "since you won't take no for an answer you might as well be comfortable."

Sam agreed and thanked her. She wheeled the bed in and was setting it up away from Andy's bed. Sam was a little self-conscious, but he still had to ask. "Do you mind if we set it up a little closer; you know, so I can keep an eye on her?"

She smiled with understanding and moved it as close to Andy's bed as she could. "How's that?"

Sam grinned. "Perfect."

He settled down on the bed facing Andy and put his hand back on hers; content and exhausted he fell asleep immediately. Joanne came back in for something and smiled when she saw him already asleep with his hand on Andy's. A couple of minutes later, she had the whole staff peeking in and there were more than a few teary eyes at the sight. _If you had to describe love, you didn't need words; you just needed to look in this room.

* * *

_

Luke woke before the sun, having set his alarm to wake him up early; he needed to get to the hospital to sit with Andy in case Sam decided to stop by before work too. _There is no way he's going to beat me in there. And there is no way they would be talking._ Luke planned to sit with Andy until he absolutely had to leave for work; forcing Swarek to wait until after shift to talk to her. _Sam didn't know it, but he was going to have to fight to see Andy. _

Luke waved at the nurses on his way by and waltzed into Andy's room prepared to put his plan into action. He stopped short when he saw Sam asleep in a bed beside Andy. He immediately turned on his heel and headed back to the nurses. "Um…when did..um…the other…Officer Swarek is asleep in there."

"Oh, you mean Sam? He's been here all night." Joanne confirmed. "I offered him the bed so he didn't have to sleep in the chair."

_Wow_. He had completely underestimated Sam, and he couldn't help but wonder why he hadn't thought to do that.

Luke was still convinced that Andy hadn't spoken to Sam though, because she had been completely asleep when he left. As he walked back, he debated whether or not to go in and wake Sam to remind him he needed to be heading to work. He looked at his watch; he knew they both had to be in for parade in just over an hour so Sam was definitely running out of time.

Luke returned to Andy's room to find her eyes wide open but full of tears, as she lay staring at a sleeping Swarek. She didn't look very confused about her feelings right now, and Luke knew he had his work cut out for him.

Andy glanced up and saw Luke. She quickly wiped away her tears before she held her finger to her lips and begged with her eyes for him to be quiet.

"We need to talk," he mouthed.

Andy nodded. "I know. I know, but…" and she motioned to Sam. "Later?"

Luke wanted to say no, but decided an argument wasn't the best way to go about this. Andy was stubborn, and if he forced her hand, she just might make a choice despite him. "I'll be back at lunch."

Andy nodded again and mouthed, "Thanks."

Luke headed back to the barn and went directly to his office. He kept watching for Sam but soon got wrapped up in his paperwork. Jerry stuck his head in. "Are you coming to parade?"

Luke jumped up, "Yep. I'll be right there."

When he walked in, he scanned the room. _Swarek wasn't there yet. S__urely Andy would have woken him up to get to work on time._

As soon as parade was over, Luke cornered Best. He was going to let him know where Sam was. "I see Swarek wasn't here."

"Oh, I know. Swarek took a personal day today." Frank informed him.

"Oh." _Dammit! _As he proceeded back to his desk, Luke couldn't help but wish that he would have thought to do that. _Maybe I can head over there now before he has a chance to talk to Andy._

"Callahan!" It was Boyd. "We need your notes from last night."

He followed Luke into the office, and sat down as he reviewed them with him.

"Did you get Swarek's statement?" Luke asked. "If not, I can head over and get it; I'm pretty sure he's at the hospital."

"Huh? No, don't worry about it; he gave it to Williams last night. We've got everything we need from him." Boyd confirmed.

"We still need McNally's but Best won't give us the OK yet. After reading Rick's statement, I can't wait to see what she has to say. But from what I read, I'd say she's wants to have more than just Swarek's back." Boyd jeered before realizing that he probably shouldn't have shared that thought with Luke. He quickly mumbled a sad attempt at an apology and left.

Luke realized he could do nothing now but wait for lunch. With a sigh, he put his head down and got to work.

* * *

As soon as Luke had left her room, Andy tried to lower her bed to get it more even with Sam's. He was reaching up a little to hold her hand and it didn't look very comfortable. She found the button she needed, and pushed it quickly. Sam stirred a little, but he didn't wake up.

She lowered her bed until it was almost even with Sam's. She gently lifted his hand up, turned on her side mindful of her injury, and scooted her back as close to the side of the bed as she could until she could feel the warmth from Sam's body. She took his arm and placed it over her side and held it against her heart. Content, she smiled and fell back to sleep, satisfied that he was safe and she was in his arms.

Sam woke up a couple of hours later and he could feel Andy close beside him. He smiled and snuggled back down until his eyes suddenly snapped open. _When he fell asleep, he was only holding her hand. Now he was practically spooning her. And his hand; well he definitely liked where his hand ended up_. He couldn't help but grin. _But how did they get here?_

It felt so good though that he really didn't want to question it. He tried to move even closer without falling in between the beds. Andy felt the movement and smiled. "I can scoot over if you want to join me."

"You're awake." Sam observed.

"Yes"

"How long?"

She turned over to face him on the bed, holding his arm so it remained over her. "I was up earlier but I didn't want to wake you. I was still tired so I just decided to get comfortable; I hope that was OK?" She asked shyly.

He grinned. It was more than OK.

"So do you?" She asked.

"Do I what?" Sam wasn't sure what she meant.

"Want me to move over and make room for you?" She offered with a coy smile.

As much as he'd rather forget about Luke, as far as Sam knew he was still Andy's boyfriend. "Andy, what about Callahan?"

Her smile disappeared as they both moved to sit up. "He actually stopped by before work."

Sam was shocked; he must have seen them there together. "Did he…did you…"

Andy chuckled at the sight of a flustered Sam; it wasn't something she saw very often. "You were here holding my hand while you slept. He wanted to talk but I asked him to come back. I didn't want to wake you. He's coming back to talk at lunch."

And then she blushed, causing Sam to grin. "What?"

"When he left, I lowered the bed so I could get a little closer." She admitted.

Sam was thrilled that she wanted to be close to him, but he needed to know exactly what that meant. "What are you going to tell Luke when he gets here?"

"I need to tell him it's over." She confessed.

Sam tried not to smirk. "Andy…"

But she reached out and took his hand, effectively stopping him. "No, Sam, please. I have a few things I need to say first."

"OK." He said a little leery, but still hopeful.

"I meant everything I said yesterday, Sam. I didn't have a choice; I had to save you. The ache in my chest at the thought of losing you was almost too much to take, and it had nothing to do with the bullet. Sam if you died, I couldn't go on. I would have no reason…"

And then she just stopped, slowly exhaling a breath. A tear fell from her eye as she looked straight into his. "Sam, I love you so much…more than anything. I would have given my life for you in a second. You have had my heart for so long and I'm so sorry that I was too stupid to realize. I'm sorry I made you wait. Oh, God. I don't even know if you are waiting. I mean I don't really know how you feel about me, but I hope that…"

Before she worked herself up even more, Sam placed his hands on either side of her face and silenced her with a gentle kiss. He moved slightly to whisper against her lips. "Andy, I love you. And I would give up my life for you too, but I really hope we never have to make that decision again."

_ He loves me. _Andy leaned in for another kiss; her body moving to get closer to him. The feel of her body against his had Sam reacting in kind, but before they got too carried away, Sam groaned and pulled back reluctantly. "Andy?"

"Hmm?" She sighed, still trying to finish what she started.

"Not until you talk to Callahan."

They both frowned.


	6. Chapter 5

Andy finally talked Sam into joining her on her bed, but he refused to do anything more than hold her in his arms and talk. He knew that with Andy he could easily get carried away, so he had to keep his distance until she was completely free. He almost wished they **had** woken him this morning so she could have already talked to Callahan. But at least he knew how she felt so he would try to be patient.

Tommy stopped by to see Andy just before eleven. He smiled when he came in the room to find Swarek lying in the bed with her. He had to laugh when Sam finally noticed him in the doorway; Sam jumped out of the bed like he'd been caught…well, in a girl's bed by her father.

Andy laughed too. "Tommy," Sam said self consciously, offering him a hand.

Tommy shook it.

"Swarek. I see you took good care of Andy for me." He said with a wink.

Even though it was obvious that nothing would be happening here, Sam was still a little uncomfortable about being caught in Andy's bed. "I said I would."

Tommy nodded in agreement as Sam quickly offered to give them some time alone while he went to get coffee. Tommy told him that it wasn't necessary, but Sam had missed his regular morning fix and needed the caffeine. He headed off, planning to take his time.

Tommy sat down in the chair beside the bed; they had already moved the extra bed out after a nurse caught Sam in Andy's bed too. "I guess you won't need this," she had said, much to their chagrin.

"So how are you feeling?" Tommy asked.

"I'm good." Andy smiled, obviously referring to more than just her injuries.

"I can see that." Tommy said, and he definitely could; Andy had not looked this happy in a long time.

Andy flushed at the knowing look on her father's face. "I'm feeling better too." She said with a grin.

Her dad beamed back. "He's a good man."

"Yes…he is." Andy agreed, with a twinkle in her eye.

"I'm happy for you." He was happy for himself too. He had waited a long time for his daughter to truly find someone, knowing it was partially his fault she was so guarded.

"I am too, Dad, thanks. I haven't been doing a good job with my life lately, but last night put everything into perspective. I think I'm finally headed in the right direction."

They talked a little more about exactly what happened and Tommy was thankful that it hadn't been worse. But he was very proud of his daughter; she was a true copper. When he told her he was proud, both were trying to hold back tears as Andy hugged him.

Sam came back about a half hour later with his coffee. "Did you have trouble finding one?" Andy teased, knowing full well he was giving them the chance to talk.

"No, I think I did just fine." He disputed.

Tommy left not long after Sam returned. Sam insisted that he could stay, but he had a few things he needed to get done. He told Andy he'd stop by again in the evening.

It wasn't long before Andy's lunch came promptly at noon. She offered to share with Sam, but he told her she had to eat it all; she needed her strength. They both looked away quickly, when the same errant but not unwelcome thought crossed both their minds.

Sam told Andy he would just run to the cafeteria to grab a sandwich. He was back so fast; Andy had to wonder if he had actually run. But she was just happy to have him back, and glad that he didn't seem to want to be away from her at all.

They had just started eating when Sam's phone rang. He checked the number…_Oliver_. He rolled his eyes and Andy just smiled at him confused. He thought about not answering but knew his friend would also be wondering how Andy was.

"Officer Shaw." Sam answered.

"My, aren't we formal, Sammy. I saw you weren't in today, and thought I'd check up on you. Do I have to ask where you are?"

"I don't know; do you?" Sam wasn't going to make it easy.

"My guess is no." Sam could tell Oliver was smiling. "How is she doing?" He asked.

"She's fine, much better today. Isn't that right, Andy?" Sam asked, holding his cell towards her.

"I'm fine." Andy spoke into the phone.

"Oh…so it's Andy now is it?" Shaw observed, quickly noticing that Sam wasn't being so formal with her anymore.

_Boy he didn't miss a beat._ "Something else you needed, Oliver?"

"Just wondering if I should stay out of Callahan's way tomorrow."

"Let's just say, you may want to steer clear of him starting this afternoon." Sam recommended.

"Good to know, Sammy. Good to know."

Sam started to laugh. "Are we done?"

"For now, Sammy, but I think we're going to have to have a drink very soon." Oliver advised.

"Sounds good, but it's going to depend on when Andy gets out of the hospital." Oliver smiled; _Sam had it bad._

"I'm sure she won't mind."

"When she's home and has the all clear, that's when I'll be going out…not before." Sam confirmed.

Andy kissed him on the cheek for being so sweet.

"What was that?" Oliver wondered.

"Never mind." Sam avoided. "Talk to you later."

"You can count on it." Shaw laughed as he hung up.

Andy smiled because Sam was smiling. "Was he just checking in?"

"I believe he guessed last night, but I think he just wanted to confirm that we were together."

"You mean together or together together?" Andy asked.

Sam laughed at her convoluted sentence. "Both."

"And did you confirm that we were together together?" She wondered.

He kissed her. "I believe I did."

Andy's eyes twinkled for a few seconds before her smile weakened slightly; she realized that Luke should be there soon. "You know you can go home if you like." She offered.

"No way." He said he wouldn't leave her and he didn't plan to. _Where did that come from?_

"You probably want a shower." She suggested.

"What I want is to be here with you."

Andy was touched, but needed to remind him. "You know, Luke's probably going to be here soon. Are you sure you want to be here?"

"Yes, I want to be here for you, but don't worry; I'll give you your privacy when he comes."

She looked a little panicked so he added, "…if you want."

"It's probably for the best." She conceded

"What time was he supposed to come?" Sam asked.

"He just said he'd be back at lunch; he probably got tied up with a case."

They both frowned. That was one thing that hadn't changed over night; he was late, keeping her waiting for him again.

When they finished eating, Sam stepped out to grab another coffee and he stopped at the desk to find out when the doctor was coming in to check on Andy. They were hoping to find out how long she would have to stay. The nurses assured him the doctor would be there within a couple of hours.

On the way back to Andy's room, Sam decided that he should check in with Frank too. When Sam called him, he had already talked to Shaw and knew that Andy was awake and feeling better. Sam let him know that they hadn't seen the doctor yet, but he would call him back when they knew more about when Andy would be released.

When Sam neared Andy's room, he heard voices. _Looks like Callahan finally made it. _

Sam approached the doorway and Andy looked up; Luke was facing the other way and didn't see him. Sam motioned to Andy that he was going to make himself scarce, but she shook her head minutely and begged him to stay with the panicked look in her eyes. Apparently, she needed the moral support.

Sam wasn't 100% sure he wanted to hear all this, but she seemed to want him there. _He wasn't going to let her down._

"I was surprised to see Swarek here this morning." Luke revealed.

"So was I." Andy returned quietly before Luke decided to just jump right in.

"Listen, Andy. I think we need to clear some things up. I really care about you. I know you have strong feelings for Sam, and it's obvious that he has strong feelings for you. But I think he may have the wrong idea. He's your partner and of course you care about him, but I think you need to talk with him to let him know that's all it is. You had his back, and you always will but that's as far as it goes." Luke really wasn't sure exactly which of them he was trying to convince.

Andy took a deep breath and stared at her hands. She definitely needed to clarify her feelings but not to Sam. "I know you care about me, Luke and I care about you too. And you're absolutely right; I do have strong feelings for Sam, but I realized last night that it's not just because he's my partner. I know now that I don't just care about Sam; if that was it, you and I might be OK. But Luke I can't live without him. Last night, when I thought I might lose him…" She had to stop to regain her composure; she did not want to cry.

Sam wanted to come in and hold her, and it took all of his willpower to stay put. But he knew the time wasn't right; she needed to do this on her own.

"I tried to make us work, Luke; I wanted it to work. But I was trying too hard to make it what I thought I wanted, not realizing what it was." She admitted looking up at him.

"But we were supposed to move in together…you said yes. I thought we wanted the same thing."

That caught Sam totally by surprise. He had no idea how close he had actually come to having her slip further away from him. He tried to control his anger at the thought of her living with Callahan, calming himself with the fact that she realized before it was too late.

"Luke, I should have never said yes." Andy confessed. "Even without my feelings for Sam, I wasn't ready for that kind of commitment. I was only doing what I thought I should be doing – playing the part, taking the next step."

Quietly, more to herself, she added, "Fake it till you make it." _She was never going to be able to make it with Luke._

"I can't fake it anymore Luke. I did care; I do care. But that's not good enough. I don't want to hurt you, but I'm only hurting us both if I keep pretending that this is going somewhere."

"I thought we were good together." Luke divulged.

"We were good; we were…fine. But don't you want great?" Andy wondered.

Luke was disappointed; he actually thought things were moving towards great. "Do you love Sam?"

She didn't want to hurt him anymore than she already had, but she couldn't lie. "Yes. I do."

"Did you love me at all?"

She didn't want to answer; _she did care but… _Her silence spoke volumes.

"It's fine Andy," Luke replied, a little snippy.

"Luke I cared…do care about you. But honestly, I have never felt like this before; this is all new to me. I've always been guarded; I've never let anyone in and I know it couldn't have been easy for you because of that. But I was always too scared to let myself love because so many people I've loved have let me down. I don't know how Sam did it, but he did. He found a way in. Normally I would have never allowed it but he didn't ask for permission, it just happened. I can honestly say that I have never loved anyone like I love Sam, and I'm sorry if that hurts you." She offered sincerely.

Sam had to turn away for a second to compose himself.

Luke wanted to make sure he put it all out there. "I think you're making a mistake; he's going to break your heart."

Sam wanted to come in and hit Luke just then, and Andy didn't have to see his face to know that. "No." She stated firmly, stopping them both short.

Her tone softened as she looked at Luke again. "I'm finally willing to take that chance, Luke. I've never wanted to do that before; I was always content not to let anyone get too close. I've had feelings for Sam for a long time and I never acted on them because that's exactly what I was afraid of; I knew he could do it." She admitted, before continuing. "I know he could break my heart. Truthfully, if I lost Sam, he wouldn't just break it; there would be nothing left – it would just be gone. But last night I realized that I'm finally willing to pay the price because I know it will be worth every second that I get to spend with him."

"What if he decides to take a case and leave for months at a time? You know it could happen." Luke was grasping at straws and trying every bit of Sam's patience in the process.

"I guess that's something he and I will have to discuss; but I hope it will be a decision we can both live with. It would kill me, but I can't not have him in my life." Andy reasoned.

"So this is it. You're sure? "

"I am, Luke, I'm sorry. As much as I care about you, my heart belongs to Sam."

"What about his heart? He has quite a reputation; you know he's never been one to settle down before."

"I guess you'll have to ask him that." Andy instructed. Luke realized she was looking over at the entrance and he moved his gaze to see Sam standing in the doorway. Luke frowned. _How long has he been standing there?_

Sam couldn't wait any longer and he walked in to stand on the other side of Andy's bed. He looked first at Andy and then he turned to Luke to see if he really needed an answer to that.

Luke decided quickly that he didn't want to hear it; he could see his answer. In fact he had seen it in Swarek's eyes for a long time now, but this time it wasn't just longing – it was complete fulfillment.

"I should get going." Luke stated abruptly before he just turned and left.

"Luke, I hope we can still…"

But he was gone. _It's probably going to take a while for things to move past awkward._

Andy smiled up at Sam and he tried futilely to smile back. "You were going to move in with him? Why didn't you tell me?" Frankly, he was a little bit hurt.

"He had only asked me yesterday morning. And I did say yes…but I was just fooling myself – trying to make the life I thought I wanted or needed. But after last night, I just couldn't do it. I couldn't fool myself anymore."

Sam brushed his nose against hers. "I'm glad you finally came to your senses." Adding in his mind…._before it was too late._

Andy smiled and kissed him sweetly. "Me too."

"Andy…about what Luke said about the undercover work?"

Andy was a little scared; she wasn't sure she was quite ready to have this discussion. She knew Sam liked undercover work, and she knew he was one of the best. "Yes?" She answered tentatively.

"Before…us…I had no reason to stay at home; there was nothing or no one keeping me there." He held her gaze as he continued. "But Andy, now that I have you; I have the only reason I need. I don't ever want to leave again."

Andy smiled, feeling the joy and love right down to her toes. She pulled Sam back onto the bed with her and brought her lips to his, pouring every bit of joy she had into one seemingly endless kiss. And Sam was a more than willing participant; she had broken up with Callahan and there was nothing stopping them now.

Well, almost nothing. Someone cleared their throat in the doorway, and they both looked up, embarrassed to be caught once again.

The doctor simply smiled, looking over at Sam for permission. "Do you mind if **I** take a look at her?"

Sam got up and stepped back to give the doctor some room. He motioned to Andy. "She's all…"

But he didn't finish the thought out loud; he was going to say all yours but she wasn't…_Mine_.

Andy knew exactly what he was thinking and tears immediately filled her eyes. _She was finally his.

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_

A.N. This story is pretty much over, and I could just leave it here. But I think I want to add a quick epilogue because I've known from the start what I want the last sentence to be. Unfortunately, though, I am ending this chapter with basically nothing written for the last chapter. I'll try not to take too long.


	7. Epilogue

Thanks to everyone who stuck with me through this story; I appreciate the reviews and love reading them. This could have easily become more chapters as Sam and Andy start their life together, but it is simply an epilogue…a summary to get us to happily ever after. Short and Sweet. You'll have to fill in your own details. Enjoy!

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Sam sat patiently while the doctor checked Andy out. The doctor had originally asked him to step out, but Andy insisted that he be able to stay. When the doctor was finished, Sam asked. "Well, when can I take my girl home?" Andy grinned at Sam; she loved the sound of that.

The doctor wanted Andy to stay for one more night just to be safe; she would be released the following afternoon. After a couple more days rest at home, she would be able to go back on desk. Then, after a week on desk, she was to come back in for a check up to see how she was healing. If everything looked good, she could go back out on patrol with Sam. They were both wondering about her ability to do other things, but neither was brave enough to ask.

The 7 days Andy spent on desk, turned out to be a long week for both of them. They had gotten used to being with each other all day and they missed that. Still it was a comfort to know that they now had their evenings together.

True to his word, Sam spent those first couple of nights at home with Andy before she insisted that he go to the Penny for a drink with Oliver after her first shift back. Sam convinced her to come too so she could celebrate her return to work with her friends.

Andy came for one drink, but found that she tired quickly. She didn't want Sam to feel obligated to leave with her so she told him she was walking home. That wasn't going to work for Sam and he started to stand immediately. The last thing Andy wanted to do was pull him away from his friends; he had already been so good to her. Thank goodness Traci solved the dilemma, offering to take Andy home.

Sam asked her if she was positive she didn't want him to come. She smiled; first teasing him that she definitely wanted him to come home with her, before confirming that she would be fine. He flashed her a full dimpled grin before kissing her goodbye. He promised he wouldn't be long.

After that first week, Andy was cleared to go back to the streets and the two settled into a new routine, easily getting accustomed to spending all day with each other and then going out or home together at night as well. As soon as Andy got that OK from the doctor, Sam took it as an OK for him too and Andy was more than happy to agree. On what was to be their first night together, they rushed home from work with no interest in heading to the Penny. They had waited long enough.

Everything just clicked for the two of them; it was easy. Nothing was faked or forced; it just worked. And it wasn't long before they both knew this was it for them. There was no thought about the next step, and when it should happen or if it should happen. It just did.

It was barely over a month when they realized that they were already living together. So there was no question when Sam suggested Andy give up her apartment and 'officially' move in.

The next thing they knew, six months had passed and living together wasn't enough anymore. Sam wanted it all with Andy…the house, the yard, the dog, the kids…everything. He didn't plan anything elaborate, that wasn't his style; but romantic – without a doubt. And Andy of course said yes.

For some it may have seemed like a quick engagement, but not to them. It felt like they had been together forever and they were more than ready; it was what they both wanted. After they told their family and closest friends, Andy made sure to tell Luke next. She didn't want him to hear via the grapevine. Things were still awkward, but he did appreciate her consideration. And he couldn't help but admit that she was definitely happier. It was hard to begrudge her that.

Sam and Andy immediately started looking at houses, and it didn't take them long to find one they both loved that was close enough to the station and that had room for what they hoped would be an expanding family. They made the offer and then waited patiently for it to go through.

The day they found out the house was theirs Sam didn't even have to say the words. The smile on his face said it all; their future was about to start. She didn't need him to tell her it went through; she simply grinned and said, "So…um…when do we get our keys?"

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Mamaverd – I promised you that she wouldn't say it to Luke. This time she finally says it to the right guy!


End file.
